Several months have passed since we posted our first article regarding recommended OSx86 hardware. Since that time, the demand for Intel Hackintosh computers has increased drastically, because the possibilities of the OSx86 community have evolved very quickly.

What hardware will you purchase next? If you'd like to build a new high-performance OSx86 machine to profit by an excellent price performance ratio, but you don't like to spend hours of research to find working hardware, you can find suggestions here. An Intel HackMac is highly extendable and very powerful, hence a great alternative to an iMac or Mac Pro.

Late 2008 Intel OSx86 DIY-Construction Kit

Please note that this is only a guideline - there are many additional hardware parts available that work fine.
However, this thread is dedicated to suggest high-end hardware that provides incredible OSx86 performance!

Motherboard

Name: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS4
Chipset: Intel P35
Details: This is a beautiful motherboard, which works nearly out of the box, as well as with EFI and the vanilla kernel. It only requires its audio to be fixed by a simple patch.

There are other P35-based motherboards that work fine (cf. first article), but the P35-DS4 is the most advanced one.

Note: Unfortunately NewEgg currently doesn't have this hot item in stock. Please ask your local hardware shops meanwhile.

Processor

Option 1:

Name: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 8MB L2 Cache
Details: The Q6600 is a high-performance four core Kentsfield 2.4GHz processor, which enables heavy multitasking.

Option 2:

Name: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 12MB L2 Cache
Details: The Q9450 is a high-performance four core Yorkfield 2.6GHz processor. A stunner!

Video Card

Name: GIGABYTE GV-NX86T256H GeForce 8600 GT
Details: 256 MB, 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SLI Supported

Memory

Option 1:

Name: Corsair XMS2 2GB DDR2
Details: 240-Pin, SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

Option 2:

Name: Corsair 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR2
Details: 240-Pin, SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

After choosing the essential parts, you also need a well-built case and power supply. Especially the case is one of the most important parts of your HackMac, as it has to keep your hardware cool. Make sure that you invest accordingly.

Finally, make sure to buy a copy of Mac OS X Leopard. Please support Apple Inc. as much as you can.

Hmm, nice list, pretty close to my build, but I'm wondering why you're backing such an old motherboard, sure it is pretty close to working out of the box, but so are most of the newer P45 series. I'm not saying people shouldn't buy it, or it shouldn't be on the list, I'm just curious why you've decided to choose it for this article.

Hi caped_crusader,

I've experienced the GA-P35 as an excellent choice for OSx86 machines.
I haven't had a chance to get my hands on a GA-P45 yet, but I'll update the list as soon as possible.

Please don't hesitate to contact me via PM to share your experiences.

Cheers.

caped_crusader: My Asus A8N-SLI Premium is from about 2006 and has Socket 939 which is rather old. But it runs fine, is absolutely fantatsic equipped and works out of the box with nearly all available images. OSx86-boards don't need to be the newest on the market.

But anyway, it is not possible to recommend 'the perfect hardware'. There are too many components out there, and so this depends on the needs of the user and the money we wants to spend. And personal things are also included, I don't like Intel, even it may be better, and I always would buy an Asus board and an ATI gfx card like I've ever done.

But I have enough desktop machines, so there isn't an Intel needed. Only a laptop would be an Intel, but it's also difficult to find a laptop which matches the compatibility and has a good battery. If you have a laptop wich runs only 2-2,5 hours this is crap. I think the Acer Travelmate 5720-602G16 could be nice, it seems to be fully compatible and has a running time up to 5 hours.

I agree completely with what you have said about it not needing to be the newest, but some users like to use their hacks for more than just os x, and also like the latest boards. Also sometimes theres added benefits from having the latest gear, such as knowing you're going to recieve support for a problem, as sometimes companies stop supporting older hardware. But I agree and just thought that users should be informed that they have the choice to get the latest models and know that it would probably work instead of thinking only older boards will.

Then again, this topic is titled "Recommended Intel OSx86 Hardware..." - And it's common for such threads to list ONLY known good hardware. This type of thread is normally aimed at newbs that would normally post as their first thread: "What hardware should I use for MY Hackintosh?" For them, I think most of us would suggest a known good, even conservative, starting place. The more well-schooled and/or more adventurous of us aren't likely to need such a thread... For those folks you can start a "Bleeding-Edge Intel OSx86 Hardware" thread - or: "Newest Intel Hardware for the OSx86 Adventurous!"

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three (3) ( oops! NOW FOUR (4)! ) working Zehyroth installs! 10.5.1, 10.5.2, and NOW 10.5.3 !! ( oops! 10.5.4 !!! )

True, but then again, thats what the hardware compatibility list over at the OSX86project wiki is good for. But I see your point, things are only recommended once they've become widely used, which doesn't really happen for 'new' hardware.

What about memory DDR3 on GA-P35-DS4?

Hey, can anyone recommend a compatible low-cost motherboard? I'm knew to this whole business and I'm looking at this model but I'd like to find something a bit cheaper.

atx or micro atx?
What specs are important to you?